I am under the impression that in virtually every state, that even if your only intent is to adopt, you have to be classified as a foster family first. That does not mean you will be fostering scores of children, only the child or siblings you have targeted. However, even when your child is placed with you, the adoption is not final instantly. The usual supervisory period is 6 months. During that time, the family and children are making sure they are a good "fit", and DSS continues to monitor, usually with monthly visits by a caseworker. During this time period, you are not the child's legal parents, because you have not finalized the adoption yet. So your classification is foster parent. I don't think there is any way around that if you adopt through the state. Money should not be an issue. The state does homestudies at no charge, and the only up front cost would be for the attorney chosen to handle the finalization. And those costs are re-imbursable up to $2000. If they have to travel to visit the child, those costs are also re-imbursable under the same "non-recurring expense" category. (same $2000 cap, total) Have your friends go to this website, and they can view a lot of the children available for adoption in N.C. They can have their caseworker contact the child's worker and get the ball rolling if they see a child or children they are interested in.
http://www.dhhs.state.nc.us/dss/adopt/steps.html